Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1887-08-12


the hre could be fought and 80 the at
tempt was made to smother it ont There
was no pick and shovel to dig it up, no
basket Or barrow to carry it in, and 80 des-
perste, they dug their fingers down into
the earth, which Il long drOuth had baked
as hard rs stone and heaped the precious
htndtulls thus hardly won upon the
flames, aud with tins earth, handful
by handful,
KEPT BACK THE FOE
While this was going on, other brave men
crept underneath the wrecked ears, beneath
the hre and wooden bars which held pris-
OnerS so many precious lives, and with
pieces Of board aud sOmeti mes their hands
beat back the flames when they famed up
alongside some unfortunate wretch, who,
pinned down by heavy beam, looked on
heIpiessiy while it seemed as if his death
by hre was certain; and while the fight Was
thus gong on, the ears OF workers were
nllSi with the grOan5 ~ dying men, the
apgcished euIreaticS of those whose death
seemed certain unless the terrible blaze
could he eXtjnguished, and the cries of
those 100 BADLY hurt to care in what man
ner the end were brought about, SO only it
would be quick. So they dug up the
earth with their hands, reckless OF blood
streaming out from broken finger nails
and heaplng 1t up III little mounds while
all the while came the heartrending cry,
For God sake don I let us burn to death. "
But finally
THE VICTORY WAS WON.
H.. l.
deavOr, and as its last sparks died away q
light came up in the east to take their
place, and dawn came on the scene of
horror. While the fight had been going
on men had been dying, and there were
not 80 many wounded To take out of the
wreck a. there had been four hours before.
But IN the meantime the country had been
aroused; help had come from ChatswOrth,
Forest and Piper City, and the dead were
laid reyerently alongside each other in the
field, where ready hands took them, and
into Chatsworth, while some OF the
wounded were carried to Piper City. One
hundred and eighteen was the awful poll
Of the dead, while the wounded number
four times that many The full tale Of
the dead cannot, however, he told for days.
ChatswOgth was
TURNED INTO 4 NIoRGUE
to-day. The town nall, the engine house
and the depot were all full OF dead bodies,
while every house in the little village hnd
its quota of wounded. There were over
one hundred corp3es laying il the extern
porized dead house, and every man and
woman was turned into an amateur hut
Jealous nurse. over in the lumber yard,
the noise OF hammers and saws rang
out on the air and the busy
carpenters were making rough collins
to carry to their homes the dead bodies Of
the eNcuTslouiSts, who, twelve hours be
fore had left their homes tull OF pleasur-
able expectations OF the enjoyment they
were going to have during the vacation
which had begun. When the news OF the
disaster was iirSt flashed over the wires
prompt ard was az once sent Dr.. Steele,
chief surgeon OF the Toledo, Peoria and
Western road, bad come on at once in a
special train, and with him were two other
surgeons and their assistants aud several
physicians from Peoria There also came
ircm Peoria delegations of Red Men and
the Ancient Order OF United Workmen,
members OF both societies being
uN IWE ILL-FAIEu TRAIN
AMI SO after : o'clock in the morning there
were plenty OF people to do the work that
4. ,Ia' such prompt attention. In the
/. .oHA "A.. Mao tue main Hospital aud ia IL
anxious relatives aud ,orruwiu. friends sat
and, tanning gently the sufferers faces
qUericd the attending surgeons as they
bound up the wounds and insisted that
there must be hope. DoMn in the dead
houses, fathers, husbands, brothers, sis
lcrs, wives and children tuariully inspected
each face as it was uncovered, and sighed
us features were unknown or cried out il
.angu.sh when q well known face, some
times iearlully manglcd but recognizable,
was uncovered The entire capacity of the
little village was taxed, and kind-hedrted
women drove in from miles 10 give their
Gentle ministrdtiOns to sufferers. No
sooner had tn" wreck occurred than
SCENE OF ROBBERY
commenced some band OF unspcakahle
miscrrauts, hcIrtllSs and with only crimi-
nal Instincts WAS on hand, and like the
guerillaS who throng the battle field the
nigh, after q conflict and lilch from the
dead the money which they received for
their mcaEre pay, stealing even the
bronze medals, and robbing from the
children ui heroes the 10 others worthless
rmhlems of their fathers bravery, So
last night did these human hyenss plunder
the dead from this terrible accident, and
take even the sheets which covered their
feet WhDlthese wrrches are is not known.
Whether they were band Of pickpocke's
who accompanied the train, or some rob
hsr gang who lurking III the vicinity.
cannot be said. The horrible suspicion.
however, exists, and there are many who
give i, credit, that the accident was
\ DELIBERATELY PLANNED CASE OF
TRAIN WRECKING.
That the bridge wa5 st; on fir" 10y IN sreauts
who hoped to seize the oppcr unity offered !;
aud the fact that the bridge was 80 lar CON
,umcd at the time the train came along
and the added fact that the train was au
houy and half lrtrarr pointed out ~ evi-
drncc OF n careful conspiracy. II seems
hardly pnS-ihlc that men could be so lost
to al. the oTduary feeling which anumatca
the hrrsst- 1T the human race, but still
men, who viii rob dead men, who will
steal from the dying aud will plunder
wounded held down by broken beams of
wrecked car, whose death hy fire
seemed imminent. can do most any
thing which is base, and that is what
these fruds in human form did. They
went into cars when the lire was burning
fercely underneath, and when the poor
wretchrs who were pinned there begged